Which is best?

[Donna D.]

I noted that there are 50 manufacturers of these fibreglas rigs... My Goodness, that's a heap of little units to check out. That's why I turned to you all. -smile- Bye. FrancesM

Past manufacturers Frances, most of the ones you noted on the home page listing are long gone. But the trailers live on! and that alone should tell you something about how well they were made to start with. Granted a lot has to do with owner maintenance too. If you're looking to buy new, then these are your choices:
Current Trailer Manufacturers of molded lightweight fiberglass rvs

[Lisa M.]

Have you had a chance to look in a fiberglass rig, to look at one up close? There's way less to go wrong. For instance, my cabinets will never fall on my head because they're part of the molded fiberglass, not separate and attached with screws. I suppose I don't have as much storage space as one of those big stick-builts, and I may not have all the comforts of home, but if I wanted ALL the comforts of home I'd stay there!

Forgot to look where you live, but see if there's a rally in your area where you can see a few different types of FGRV's. Also, call the manufacturers and they will give you names of people in your area who will let you have a look-see at their trailers. Then you can see what works for you. Personally, my 1998 Casita Spirit DLX is PERFECT for me and my needs, but that isn't true for everyone. Good luck to you!

[Roger H]

Thanks for that clarification, Frances.

The problem with someone declaring one brand better quality-wise than the rest of them is that you never know what "quality" means to them. Is quality fit? Finish? Longevity? Value for the dollar? "Value" is as, if not more important, than "quality".

I've had at least six fiberglass units in the past five years, and six Airstreams in the past twenty. What I've learned is that "quality" is in direct proportion to price. The construction of my Born Free moho is fabulous. It should be. A new '08 will set you back $100k. Mine is an '01 that I bought last year with 65k miles on it. My folks bought an '02 Coachman Leprechaun last month with 23k miles on it in very good condition for $5k less than I paid for my '01 23'. My cabinets are all solid oak, and the furniture is ultraleather. My coach has dual thermopane windows and lots of cool goodies. I have three steel bars that make a roll cage, and the exterior is all molded fiberglass panels with a molded fiberglass roof.

Their Coachman cabinets are laminate material with wood doors and the moho has a cloth interior, single pane windows and sandwich wall construction with a rubber roof. They have HWH jacks I don't have, but not the heated power mirrors. They have the queen, I have a cab over bed.

Which is better? It depends. Their's is newer, a 31' with a rear queen. It also has less than 1/3 the miles and was less expensive. It will last them as long or longer than mine will last me. It won't depreciate much more over the life of the coach. Mine will lose at least another $10k in the next few years. They're both good quality. Value for the dollar, though, is a personal decision.

FG trailers are much the same, but there are few differences in quality among the current crop of new trailer manufacturers. They're all really good, and some are a little better, but you pay for that. Casita makes a very nice coach. Scamp builds custom oak and birch interiors which are gorgeous. While I've not seen an Escape in person, our members rave about the quality. Eggcamper seems to be of high quality. Oliver just began producing very high quality trailers at half again to twice the cost of one of the other current brands.

Really, you can't go wrong with any of them quality-wise. Value, on the other hand, is in the eye of the beholder.

Roger

[Tom Trostel]

As you value great workmanship and live in Tennessee, you might drive over to Lewis County and take the Oliver factory tour.

[Morgan]

Frances,

There is a new company making fiberglass travel trailers about 50 miles WSW of Nashville. You might give them a call and tour their factory.

Oliver web site

Oliver discussion

I know nothing about them, but I have heard good reports about their quality. They are apparently costly.

[Roger H]

Frances, I'll go even a little further in my comparisons.

If you want a custom wood cabinet interior, your only choice is from the Scamp custom shop. Scamp produces 13', 16', and 19' goose-neck "fifth wheels".

Bigfoot offers a the only true four-seasons trailer on the market. Dual thermopane windows, enclosed and heated tanks, and excellent insulation. They are also one of the most expensive fiberglass trailers, but the interior isn't all wood, nor could most of their clients afford to buy the trailers if they did an all-wood interior. The interiors are nice, but not the quality of the Scamp custom shop. If you want a 21 or 25' molded fiberglass trailer today, Bigfoot is your only option. They also produce a 17'. Because of the four-season option, Bigfoot is one of the heavier FG trailers out there per linear foot.

If you want an aluminum frame, LED taillights, bright paint job, custom themed interior, and bells and whistles, Oliver is the trailer for you, again at twice to three times the price of a standard Scamp or Casita. They only produce a 17' trailer.

Casita offers value and high quality construction and produces the most trailers. They produce 13', 16' and 17' trailers.

Eggcamper is recent entry into the market, and is a high quality 17' camper that features a full fiberglass interior and double wall construction.

Escape is a high quality camper, also from Canada, that offers service that is second to none and in addition to their 17' trailers offers the only true fifth wheel in current construction in the Fiberglass trailer market.

Lil' Joe is probably the smallest and lightest FG trailer available for folks who have a limited towing capacity.

I know I've left some players out, but I'm only listing some to make a point. So... once again, they aren't apples compared to apples. Each has a niche that they've found to market to, and they're all of high quality.

[Alf S.]

If you want to view that site about that wreck: The brakes gave out...
Here's the link: http://www.rv.org/p17809.htm

Hi: Frances...We were as hot if not hotter 'n you yesterday. Our humidity is because of the Great Lakes. We're 1 1/2 hrs. E. of Detroit & 2 1/2 hrs. W. of Buffalo surrounded by water... and sometimes it even falls from the sky...and turns white n hard!!! We just sold a '77 Boler in excellent shape and bought "Our Escape Hatch" '07 5th. wheel. Does that say something for Fiberglass!!!
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[FrancesM]

I checked out the Oliver website, but apparently they are shy about posting the prices.
Any idea where I can find them? Maybe I didn't look in the right place. FrancesM

[Donna D.]

I don't think we've discussed the Oliver pricing much here on FiberglassRV other than to say, it's quite a bit higher than Scamp or Casita, and even higher than the Escape.

Here's a link from the Casita Club however: New Fiberglass Trailer?, Saw it in Pineknot pictures!

[Robin G]

I checked out the Oliver website, but apparently they are shy about posting the prices.
Any idea where I can find them? Maybe I didn't look in the right place. FrancesM

Frances, Their not shy, If you call them. They will walk you thru what you want and give you a price. They are different from other manufactures in that they have a base with what other manufactures call options, yet they have options that others don't. They can also customize it just about any way you want. They are worth checking out. I have done a lot of web search and I have yet to find an Oliver owner that dosen't Love their Ollie. Yes they are newer to the fiberglass world of trailers but I think their reallly taking the buyers needs/wants etc into consideration. See for your self! Your close enough to go over and talk to them. Nice people. Though I will have to say, The 3 manufactures that I have spoken to, have all been nice. Though Oliver was way more informative. I learned a lot about fiberglass trailers from them.


You can Call Casita, and they will set you up to go see a Casita in your area. They have a referral program with their Casita owners that they let you go touch and feel one for your self. I would think Scamp has a simular program. It at least gets you into one to look at every nook and cranny. Honestly I don't think you can go wrong with most of the fiberglass trailers being made. Just find the price and quality you want.
The Big foot is a beautiful high quality trailer as well. Just tooooo wide for me to pull at this point. But Very nicely made. Robin

[Byron Kinnaman]

Which is best is a very subjective term. Roger mentioned "Value", again another subjective term, but I like it better than "best".
There are people that will tell brand such and such is best because it's what they have. Some will like a lot of glitz and systems. That may not be the highest value for all. To me the biggest value is the least cost in both initial dollars and continued costs, the least fuss with systems and systems failing. Then add the fun factor.

I'm on the other end of the spectrum from Roger and a few others. I purchased a new trailer for $10,000. My wife and I have spent somewhere around 100 nights in 2 1/5 years we've had it, towed it around 10,000 miles. We've had an absolute ball with it. Camped in all kinds of weather from thunder storms, to snow and ice, to warm and sunny. It doesn't have the additional weight of dual pain windows, a toilet, shower, AC, etc. It takes me less than 10 minutes to set up, and about that to hook up and leave.

My point is to look at what's important to you, where do you get what you want. Notice I didn't say need. Think carefully about wants, and why you want them. Our lives are filled with bigger and bigger. We're bombarded with glitzy homes, RV, automobiles, etc. advertising. Will the glitz make you happy. Will the having x, y or z in your trailer improve your life. Is the extra costs worth it. Costs include initial costs, maintenance, time to take care of, and fuss and bother. Example a shower requires larger water tank, large gray water tank, time and effort to empty, which sometimes is an hour or so in line at the dump station. A toilet requires an additional tank for black water, chemicals to keep the smell down (Note: I didn't say eliminate, cause there aint such a thing). If additional systems are important to you go for it, if glitz is important go for it.

My definition of "fit and finish" is "glitz". Not necessarily better but more on the shinny side.

As I said at the beginning "best" is subjective. What's "best" for you, is the best.